Open and Aboveboard
Updated 2026-08-22
INTRODUCTION
English translation pending.
CORE DEFINITION
Open and aboveboard describes communication that is candid, disinterested and free of concealment, a phrase whose classical usage concerns a minister advising a ruler without hidden agenda. The core proposition is that hidden intentions impose a continuous inference cost on everyone else, so disclosure of real information and motives removes a large source of friction and builds trust that later makes coordination cheaper. The key qualification is that openness concerns the substance of what is shared rather than the manner, since bluntness that ignores the recipient's position damages trust as much as concealment does.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- State The Intent: say what you actually want before discussing tactics or positions. - Share The Facts: release the information you hold rather than making others infer it. - Separate Candour From Bluntness: tell the truth in a form the other party can actually use.
Anchor fast decisions
When motives are unstated, others must model them, and models built on inference are usually wrong in the direction of threat. Wrong models produce defensive behaviour, which itself looks like evidence of bad intent and confirms the original guess. Explicit disclosure interrupts that loop, because there is nothing left to infer and defensive behaviour loses its trigger.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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Source support: Explicit
- zh.wikipedia.orghttps://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%90%8E%E6%B1%89%E4%B9%A6verified
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